TOW Misunderstandings Suck
by MiniMonster
Summary: Chapter 7 is up, the last and final chapter! I don't think it's the best, but hopefully you will like it, so please tell me how I did!
1. Default Chapter

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 1  
  
Well guys, I'm back, and this time with another fanfic series (but a shorter series than my last one!) on an idea I got a couple days ago. I decided to change the format of these and not write them in script style, but instead like a story. And just to warn you, I don't know how long these will be. I'm very sure each one will probably end up being shorter than my others, because I'm going to just end each story whenever I feel there's a good stopping point so that you're in suspense or intrigued for the next part that I'll put up. :) Now, at some point in this story I will have some flashbacks to 2003. I don't know when they'll be exactly because I'm not really writing off of something I already have written, I'm typing as I go along. Finally, without further ado...  
  
~~~  
  
February, 2011...On a plane from Texas to Chicago...  
  
Chandler approached his seat, squeezing his way past the other passengers that were trying to store their belongings in the overhead compartments. As he spotted his seat, he saw that he had a person sitting next to him, and wasn't too happy about that. All he wanted to do at the moment was to get home, not make forced small talk to a stranger. Then the woman sitting next to him turned away from the window so he could see her face, and Chandler stopped in his tracks, stunned. He couldn't believe who it was; he hadn't seen her for years.  
  
He continued walking, and stopped again when he reached his seat. Not knowing what to say, he cleared his throat to get her attention. She whipped her head towards him, and her jaw dropped once she recognized him. "Chandler." She stated it, and he couldn't decide if she was happy at all to see him. They hadn't parted on good terms. Awful terms, actually.  
  
"Hi," he said.  
  
Then she realized. "Oh, this is your seat?"  
  
He nodded. "Looks like it. I'm sure I can switch though."  
  
"Oh no," she said. "That's not necessary. I'm sure we can manage to be civil for a couple hours anyway."  
  
He wanted to go right up to the nearest flight attendant and get his seat changed immediately, but decided she was right. They were both adults, and hopefully more mature than the last time they'd seen each other. He decided he could just ignore her the whole way there, and sat down.  
  
~~~  
  
Forty minutes later, they were in the air flying over the Texas/Oklahoma border. Neither one had said another word to the other, and you could cut the tension with a butter knife.  
  
Chandler was leaning back in his seat, trying to figure out just how to deal with the situation. He glanced over at her and saw her staring at her hands. She looked over at him when she noticed him watching her, and she had an expression on her face that was a mix between anger and nervousness.  
  
"So, I see you two are still..." she said, motioning towards his wedding ring with a now-expressionless face.  
  
He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. Ten years this spring."  
  
"Huh." She suddenly got a furious look on her face, and turned to look out the window so he wouldn't see it. She knew they wouldn't get along, but decided there wasn't any need to make the situation any worse than it already was. She just wanted to make it to Chicago, and then to New York, with her sanity.  
  
Chandler noticed that however, and turned away from her as well. He realized just how angry he was. It'd been a long time since he'd seen her; in fact it was eight years ago at her wedding. The truth was, he'd never planned on seeing her again, much less having to talk to her, and now that he was, some of the things that had been said came rushing back to him. It was so hard to think about. They'd all lost so much because of it. He didn't think any of them totally understood it, or knew exactly why it had happened, even though it had broken their little group up.  
  
~~~  
  
Chandler awoke suddenly as he noticed his ears were popping. The pilot was talking on the intercom, apologizing for some delay in the landing. Thick snow? He looked out the window, and sure enough all he could see was white. He turned to look around the plane, trying to get orientated again, and remembered everything once he saw who was sitting next to him. He sighed, knowing that they'd have to say something to each other soon before they parted ways, because they couldn't just walk off without saying anything else to each other.  
  
She knew it too. As the plane touched the runway, she finally spoke. "Well, I can't say I enjoyed this flight, but I guess it could've been worse. You know, you could've had some awful B.O., or been awake for most of the time."   
  
Chandler forced a small smile at her. "That's true." The plane finally taxied to a stop, and the passengers on the plane began to stand up. "Ah, well, it's on to New York for you then?"  
  
"Yes," she replied, somewhat relieved about how he'd worded that. Hopefully he wouldn't be on the plane to New York with her. "You staying here?"  
  
"Yeah, we uh, live here." He looked once more at her, then quickly stood up and gathered his things. He wanted to get far ahead of her as fast as possible, and he could tell by the way that she remained in her seat that that was fine with her. He paused, and mumbled a "goodbye" at her before hurrying off down the aisle.  
  
~~~  
  
When he entered the airport, he was surprised to see his wife standing near the gate. She smiled as soon as she saw him, and he grinned back at her.  
  
"Hey baby, how was your flight?" she asked, wrapping her arms around him.  
  
He laughed. "You'll see in a moment. But I'm dying to know what I have to be thankful for that had you pick me up from the airport."  
  
"Just look outside, silly. I knew you'd never be able to get a cab in this weather. It took me 40 minutes to drive here myself," she replied. "Now, you looked pretty stressed a minute ago. What did you mean when you said 'You'll see in a moment'"?  
  
"Well, let's just say I knew the person I was stuck sitting next to. Made the flight quite tense."  
  
She was confused. "Well, who was it?" Just then they saw the woman enter the airport, and she saw them watching her. He felt his wife stiffen in his arms. "Oh, my God," she said, surprised to see her.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part One...  
  
Ha ha! I debated whether or not to reveal who the women are in this fic, or whether I should save it for the next, and decided upon the latter. :) It looks like this was a pretty short story, so I'll try to make the rest longer. Let me know how I did with this, it's different than how I usually write!  



	2. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 2

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 2  
  
Well guys, here's my next chapter. I had a fun time reading the reviews you guys left from my first chapter (I always love them!), and liked who you thought the people were. Some were right, others were not. :) Sorry for keeping you in suspense. Also, I just want to mention that was harder to name this series than it was to name any of my other stories. In this series I will have some flashbacks from 2003. In all of the flashbacks that I'm putting in from 2003, you can just assume Monica is pregnant, about 5 months, even though that won't be mentioned (I don't think so anyway). But for now, we'll be picking up where we left off...  
  
~~~  
  
The three of them stood there, unsure of what to do now and afraid of what another would say. "I think you know her too," Chandler said, turning back to his wife.  
  
She pulled away from Chandler and turned to the woman from the plane. "What are you doing here?"  
  
The woman smirked. "Gee Monica, it's nice to see you too. I see you're still as tactful as ever." (Ha ha! How many of you out there thought that Monica was the woman on the plane? :) Keep reading and I may reveal who the other woman is in this fic.)  
  
Monica got angry fast. "Hey, just what..."  
  
"Honey, honey, listen," Chandler said, stopping her before she said more. When she gave him a puzzled look he motioned to an airport worker that was addressing the large group of people that was standing around.  
  
"Folks, I'm sorry to report this, but Chicago is having a bit of a blizzard right now. All scheduled flights out of here for today and some of tomorrow have been cancelled. I can pretty much guarantee that you won't be able to find a cab to take you anywhere to stay for the night. So unless you live here or know somebody who's willing to take you to stay with them for the night, I'm afraid you'll have to stay here."   
  
The loud groan from the crowd muffled out whatever she said next, and the group of people clearly was in two distinct categories. The ones who could go home looked worried about driving in that weather and the ones who had to stay looked both sad and mad. Monica turned to Chandler. "Chandler, we should get home. I just left the kids with Alexis, and she's probably had enough by now with those four of her own with them. Plus, you know how Ellie gets with storms of any kind." She turned back to the woman, and didn't even try to hide her sarcastic tone from being heard. "It's been wonderful seeing you."  
  
"Oh, the pleasure was all mine," the woman replied, clearly not meaning it either.  
  
"Must've been, for it wasn't mine," Chandler mumbled to Monica as they walked off. She laughed and turned to him, giving him a kiss on the lips.  
  
"I missed you while you were gone."  
  
"I know, I missed you too. But you had it better. You didn't get stuck on a plane ride that seemed to take hours longer than it should've," Chandler replied as they made their way to the baggage claim.  
  
"Well, you were flying in circles for half an hour longer because your caption couldn't land because of the storm." She turned back to him. "But I know what you mean."  
  
He paused as they watched the luggage carousel spin around. "Mon, do you think we're wrong?"  
  
She was confused. "What? You mean with that old issue? Of course not. Hon..."  
  
"No, that's not what I meant." He pointed behind them back to where they'd come from. The woman was still standing there, looking like she was a lost child who didn't know where to go. "I know neither of us want to do it, and it's highly doubtful that she'll even accept, but do you think that we should just leave her stranded here at O'Hare all night?"  
  
Monica laughed. "Actually, I was having doubts about even returning home ourselves. Just imagine how funny it would be to stay here for the night and watch her stay here alone by herself at the same time."  
  
Chandler laughed too. "That would be interesting," he said, looking at her.  
  
"Well," Monica said, "if we did that, we wouldn't have to worry about doing our good deed of the week." She picked up his bag from the carousel and the two of them just stood there debating it.  
  
~~~  
  
"Uh," the woman sighed, finally giving in. "All right, I'll go with you."  
  
"Fine," Chandler said, and turned away from her. "Now go get your luggage so we can get out of here."  
  
~~~  
  
As Chandler drove into their driveway an hour later, everyone in the car took a deep breath. Monica turned to him. "Sorry," she whispered, "but I've gotta go next door and get the kids. You'll be okay here?"  
  
"Of course," he replied, and leaned in to kiss her. "Just not for too long."  
  
Monica grinned, and once the car had stopped, she practically jumped out and almost ran over to the house next door. She was covered in snow by the time she had reached the porch, and she lightly knocked on the door before she stuck her head in. "Alexis?"  
  
"Yeah." A woman appeared from around the corner and looked surprised at the sight. "My gosh, Mon, awful weather, huh?"  
  
Monica smirked as she pushed the door closed behind her. "That's not even the least of it." At her friend's confused expression she continued. "Look, I came over for the kids of course, but also to tell you something. You know how you always wanted to meet the reason that Chandler and I moved here in the first place?"  
  
Alexis' face turned from confusion to surprise. "Are you saying that she's here? I'm finally going to meet the infamous Rachel Green! (Ha ha...decided to reveal who she is in this fic after all!)  
  
Monica sighed. "I guess, even though that's not her last name anymore. She's at our house right now."  
  
"What?! I thought you vowed never to see each other again."  
  
~~~  
  
2003...  
  
Rachel and Monica stood facing off in the hallway, with Ross and Chandler facing off next to them. "So that's it?" Monica asked, not believing what she was hearing. A family bond and years of friendships were on the line here but they wouldn't listen or let anything get explained.  
  
"Yes, it is. We've made each other long enough, so now if you leave our lives we won't have to worry about it any longer," Rachel replied, her eyes looking wet.  
  
"So this is what you really want?" Chandler asked, not really believing it either. Although they were taking it pretty far if they weren't serious. "You want us to never see you again? You too, Ross?"  
  
Ross was staring at Monica now, looking more mad than they'd ever remembered seeing him. "Yes. If it's possible, I want that more than Rachel does. I don't think...I just can't believe...I'm so mad!"  
  
Monica looked at the ground to try and regain her composure. Looking back up at her two angry friends that now seemed like strangers to her, she managed to talk. "Fine. You wish is our command." She took Chandler's hand and they walked off.  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
Monica realized Alexis was waiting for her to say something. "I guess right now for Rachel we're the lesser of two evils."  
  
~~~  
  
End Part Two...  
  
LOL, don't hate where I'm going with this, I promise it will all eventually be explained. :) Although I'll keep you waiting for it again, haha!  



	3. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 3

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 3  
  
Okay peeps, here's a little background for the story that I was going to give you before the first chapter but didn't because I didn't want to give anything away. All you need to know is that Monica and Chandler got married in 2001, just as they did on the actual show. Sometime after that happened Ross and Rachel got together (you can decide how for yourself), and I'm not really sure what Phoebe and Joey are up to yet. I'll let you know later.  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
Back at his house, Chandler was hanging his coat in the closet when he realized that Rachel was still standing near the door, obviously uncomfortable and not knowing what to do. "The couch will be good enough for you to sleep on, I think," he said, turning towards her.  
  
"Oh, of course. I wouldn't expect you to go to any more trouble than that. After all, it's just me," she said, sounding very angry.  
  
At that moment, Monica walked through the door to see the two facing off in the hall. She stood there as four kids ran past her into the house, and slowly moved aside to reveal Alexis standing behind her. Monica seemed to think the situation was natural, but Alexis was stunned by the hostility that she could feel each person expressing.  
  
Monica decided to break the silence. "Rachel, if you'd like, there's a phone in the den that you could use if you'd like privacy for a phone call. It's the room at the end of the hall, on the left."  
  
"Great," Rachel replied, not sounding it, and turned on her heel and walked off.  
  
"Geez!" Alexis said softly after the den door had closed. "You weren't kidding. It's like the Cold War in here. Look, if you want David and me to keep the kids at our place for the night..."  
  
"Oh, no-no, no!" Monica smiled. "I think we'll need them here for distractions." She looked at Chandler as he started helping her take off her coat. "Thanks. Can you make the couch up for her please? I'm gonna go get the kids their dessert."  
  
Chandler frowned. "You sure we can't just stick her in the garage for the night?"  
  
Monica and Alexis laughed. "At least set some sheets out, she can do it herself," Monica said, and she reached out and squeezed his hand before she walked away.  
  
~~~  
  
Monica and Alexis were in the kitchen eating ice cream with Monica's children; her 8-year old daughter Kiana, 6-year old daughter Ellie, and 3-year old fraternal twins James and Candice. The youngest two had ice cream all around their mouths and were making funny faces for everyone else, causing them to laugh, when suddenly Rachel entered the room. The kids all got quiet because she was still a stranger, and the adults because of the situation.  
  
Rachel looked slightly embarrassed for entering. "I uh...water?" she asked, motioning towards the sink.  
  
"Sure," Monica nodded. "Or coffee, if you feel like making it."  
  
Rachel nodded back. "Okay." She paused for a moment in front of the cupboards trying to figure out where the coffee was kept. She found it in the first one she chose.  
  
Chandler entered the room then and smiled at the sight of his two youngest with ice cream-covered faces. "Hey, let's go get ready for bed, okay?" he said to the kids. "Last one upstairs is a stinky chicken."  
  
"Rotten egg, Daddy!" Ellie shouted, giggling loudly.  
  
"That too. Now get going!" He made a face at his children and they all ran out of the room. He took a moment to wink and grin at Monica before he ran out after them.  
  
Alexis turned to Monica and smiled. "Trade you David for Chandler. David's great in bed, you know."  
  
"So's Chandler," Monica laughed. "And I think I'll keep him, but thanks for the offer. The next time he's acting like an idiot I'll know where to send him."  
  
Alexis grinned at her, and then suddenly noticed that Rachel was still in the kitchen. She cleared her throat. "Mon, I'm gonna go." Monica started to protest. "No, I should. I'm gonna go help David get our own munchkins to bed now," she added as she stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow." She glanced at Rachel as she left the room, but said nothing else.  
  
Monica felt uncomfortable being alone with Rachel. She pretended to be very interested in her ice cream, and didn't look up. "There's, ah, cream and sugar there for you."  
  
"Yeah, I found it," Rachel replied, feeling just as uncomfortable. She noticed that the coffee was almost done. "You want a cup?"  
  
Monica was surprised. "What was this, Rachel being nice to her? She decided to pretend too, and replied with a hesitant 'sure.'  
  
"Look, I really appreciate what you guys are doing for me, but it's not going to change anything between us," Rachel said a few minutes later as she gave Monica her cup of coffee. "You've got some serious issues."  
  
"Oh, I'm not the only one!" Monica countered, already getting fired up.   
  
"Hey, relax, okay? I didn't come here to fight," Rachel said, retreating back into the kitchen.  
  
Monica sighed. "I know. And don't worry, Chandler and I aren't about to pick up and move back to New York with you."  
  
Rachel nodded as she took another sip of coffee. She too wished Alexis had stayed so that she and Monica would still be talking, instead of herself and Monica. "You know, I called Ross. He was surprised to hear about your kids."  
  
"Well what did he think, that'd we'd simply chosen to wait all this time and not have any, and that's why he didn't hear about them?" Monica asked with a smirk. "He really doesn't know me."  
  
"Well, I was surprised about that too. I always assumed he knew but just never told me about it because he didn't want me to get worked up," Rachel replied.  
  
"How do you think he would've found out that I was pregnant?" asked Monica. "Is Phoebe still psychic?"  
  
Rachel was very surprised. "You mean you don't talk to your parents anymore or what?"  
  
"Nope." Her answer was curt. "See, Ross kinda told them some stories about me, so now we no longer talk."  
  
Although she thought it was sad that Monica and her parents no longer had a relationship, Rachel was getting mad. "As I recall, you brought the whole incident upon yourself. I'm not the one who said..."  
  
"What? We didn't do anything! You're the ones who just drove us out of your lives; turned everyone we loved against us, without even letting us explain! You didn't hear everything, you know!"  
  
"Oh, really, there was more? Great! Let me hear it! What else did I do that you find so awful that you feel the need to ruin the best day of my life? Go ahead, right now! Oh, unless you'd rather wait until Chandler comes back downstairs so that it can be two against one!" Rachel yelled right back.  
  
"Oh, all right...y'know what! You said you didn't come here to fight!" said Monica, standing up. "Well I didn't let you stay here to fight, and right now there is much more talking going on between us that I ever wanted to happen!" She made her way towards the door. "I don't care what you do. Leave; walk back to O'Hare. Stay; there's stuff for you in the living room, including pajamas and stuff. Either way, I hope not to see you much ever again!" she cried, suddenly overwhelmed with the whole situation, and she fled the room.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part Three...  
  
Well, how is it going? I personally think it's kinda dumb at the moment, and I'm trying to make this series a few more chapters long, so it's hard because I don't want to come right out and say what "The Incident" is just yet...but actually I think I'll get to that in the next fic. Actually I know I will. Anyway, please leave a review!  



	4. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 4

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 4  
  
Well folks, here's chapter 4. I'm going to rate this more PG-13 because of a little language, but it's nothing I'm sure you can't handle. And I know it's taking me a while (haha, I'm doing that on purpose!) but I am making progress in explaining the whole incident. Patience is a virtue, my friends. :) Anyway, this chapter will mostly be a flashback to 2003, almost the same time as before, so remember Monica is five months pregnant. And now I guess, on with the show!  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
Monica was still awake, being too consumed with thoughts of That Day to relax enough to go to sleep. She assumed that Chandler was sleeping because he'd rolled over towards her a while ago but had long stopped talking.  
  
~~~  
  
2003... Right before the previous flashback took place...  
  
Monica entered the dressing room just as Phoebe was leaving and smiled at Rachel who was sitting on a chair, just hanging up her cell phone and retying the robe that she was wearing. When Rachel didn't smile back, she realized that something was strange. Where was Phoebe going? And why wasn't Rachel changing into her wedding dress?   
  
"Rach, what's wrong?" she asked, suddenly worried. "You're not having second thoughts about the wedding, are you? And where's Phoebe?"  
  
"I told her I needed to talk to you for a minute," Rachel coolly replied.  
  
Monica was shocked. What was going on? "Why?"  
  
Ross entered at that moment, dragging Chandler in with him, so Rachel didn't answer. Monica and Chandler exchanged a look as Ross and Rachel tried to figure out what to say.  
  
"What's up? Are you going to tell us, or are we just going to stand around here all night?" Chandler asked.  
  
"Well you know, I think it's safe to say that the wedding is effectively ruined now," Ross started. "We're not going to cancel it though, too many people would be too upset. It's too late to make any changes in the wedding party because it would really mess up the ceremony. I really hope you two can make it through the evening."  
  
Rachel continued. "We're leaving tonight for our honeymoon, as you know, and we'll continue to keep this cover up until then. But once we return they'll change. Drastically."  
  
Monica and Chandler stood there, totally confused and lost of any sense of what to say. The other two didn't notice that though, and just stared at the ground as they went on.  
  
"You two really had us fooled, you know. Just how long has this been going on?" Rachel asked, finally looking up at Monica.  
  
"I think we need to talk," she replied, "we have no idea what you're talking about. If we could just..."  
  
Rachel suddenly felt like she was gonna cry. "What? What else do you want to say? You've said enough!"  
  
"I feel that I must emphasize the fact that we have no idea what's going on," said Chandler. "I don't think that we're on the same page."  
  
"Oh the same page? Of course we're not on the same page!" Ross shouted. "We're not even in the same book. Probably not even in the same damn library!"  
  
Rachel nodded in agreement. "Really! I mean, what the hell is wrong with you? Don't you have any sense of morality at all? You couldn't have even picked an earlier time to do your damage?"  
  
Monica had no idea what was going on, but she sensed that it was a problem that wouldn't easily be solved. This was starting to get pretty intense. "Morality? This is involving our morals now?"  
  
"Yeah! It involves you two being sneaky, deceiving, lying, insincere, terrible friends!" Ross said. "And you Monica, well let's just say that I never knew my sister was such a complete bitch!"  
  
Monica gasped, feeling like she'd just been slapped. "Hey," said Chandler, quick to defend her, "that's not all true! Or appropriate!"  
  
"What would you know about something being appropriate! You've ruined what is supposed to be the best day of our life! You've ruined our future too." Rachel exchanged a look with Ross before continuing. "We're changing things up. Earlier we made it sound like we could work things out. But we can't. After today, we don't want to see you anymore. We'll just all move on with our lives."  
  
Chandler could not believe what he was hearing. "You're not serious."  
  
"Another thing you're wrong about," said Rachel as she shook her head.  
  
"Well, there isn't really time now to get into this, but we really need to sit and talk about this," Monica started. "Let's not do this today, but we can continue when you return..."  
  
"Damn it, Monica, listen to us. This is it, the last day that we're going to acknowledge you. You may think that we're being hasty and are overreacting, but what you two did is unforgivable! And, apparently we weren't as close of friends as we thought we were, so maybe this won't break your heart much." That was one of the most difficult things that Ross had ever said, but he knew that they all couldn't go on pretending like some of them obviously had been.  
  
The four stood there silently, all surprised by everything that had just happened. Finally Monica walked towards the door, with Chandler following her. When the reached the hall they turned back to look at Ross and Rachel, who were still watching them and had moved to the doorway.  
  
"Listen," Rachel said, "if you see Phoebe, will you send her back in here? I have to get dressed yet."  
  
Monica just stared at her for a minute before she answered. "Sure. I'm not...are you...we should talk about this!" Their expressions settled that issue for her. "So that's it?" she asked, not believing what she was hearing. A family bond and years of friendships were on the line here but they wouldn't listen or let anything get explained.  
  
(And in case you don't get it, the previous flashback would continue from here.)  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
Monica didn't even realize that she was crying until she felt Chandler's hand on her cheek, wiping the tears away. She smiled and rolled from her back onto her side so she could look at him. "I didn't think you were still awake."  
  
"I was just enjoying the view," he said, smiling. "I bet we were thinking about the same thing."  
  
"Kinda hard not to," she replied, taking his hand and lacing her fingers through his.  
  
Chandler paused for a moment. "How'd it go earlier? Maybe I'm hearing things, but I thought I heard some raised voices." He raised an eyebrow at her.  
  
Monica chuckled. "Well, you are a little nuts, but you weren't hearing things," she said, causing Chandler to laugh. "Let's just say that when Alexis left there was nobody left to be the buffer."  
  
"I'm sorry," said Chandler. "Maybe this was a bad idea, having Rachel here. I mean, we were doing fine here for so long. Now everything's being brought up all over again."   
  
"I know," Monica sighed. "But maybe it's not all that bad. I mean, even though we don't talk anymore, I always wondered how Rachel and Ross were. And what Phoebe and Joey have been doing. Now maybe we can find some of that out."   
  
"Mm-hmm," agreed Chandler. "I noticed you didn't mention your family."  
  
Monica shrugged, a difficult task while lying on her side. "I know. But what am I supposed to do? They never talk to us anymore now that Ugly Duckling Monica and Perfect Prince Ross are feuding."  
  
Chandler kissed her on the nose. "The ugly duckling turned out to be a swan, babe. When was the last time you read that book?" She smiled, but Chandler saw that there were tears starting to form in her eyes and decided it was time to go to bed. "Okay, you know, we really should get some sleep. We don't know when Rachel's flight will be rescheduled for tomorrow, if in fact we do get rid of her then, so we may have another long day with her. My motto is 'Be Prepared,'" holding up two fingers, "and we can't very well be that on a bad night's sleep."  
  
"Ohh," groaned Monica, but grinned at him. "I suppose you're right. But I think what I need more is an experience that will make me forget the day's events. Feel up to the challenge, Boy Scout?"  
  
Chandler scoffed at that. "Challenge? Please. That's not at all a challenge. And I'm hardly a boy, I'm 100% man. Beefsteak." He leaned over and gave Monica a passionate kiss, causing her to have to stop giggling. "There," he said as they pulled away. "Forgotten yet?"  
  
"Forgotten what?" Monica said, grinning at him. He chuckled, and once again moved in to prove his point.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part Four...  
  
Whew! I must say that so far this was the hardest chapter to write. Actually, that's only because of the flashback scene from 2003. That was kinda long, and this is the longest chapter so far. I can't promise they'll all be this length, and I hope you're enjoying my series even though I think it definitely has it's weak moments. I'll try to get the next part done soon!  
  



	5. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 5

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 5  
  
Well folks, I only have a couple more things to reveal, because in this chapter most of The Incident will be revealed. Not all of it though, keep in mind. I still have a couple more chapters to go. But you're all very good at being patient. :) Okay, well this chapter will once again be rated PG-13, for the few swears I threw in here. Hey, they're mad, arguing, what do you expect? Anyway, I'm sure you can handle it. On with the show!  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
Monica was in the kitchen the next morning braiding her daughter Kiana's hair. It was long and dark brown, just like her own, and Chandler loved it because that was just another feature that Monica and Kiana had in common. Chandler had called the airport again this morning to check Rachel's flight, but there was still no news. It had stopped snowing so hard sometime in the night, and there was still snow coming down but not nearly as much. There was several feet of snow on the ground outside however, and Monica knew it would still be a while before the airport had cleared off the runways.  
  
She had just finished Kiana's second braid when Rachel entered the room. She was dressed and freshly showered, and gave Kiana a little smile when she saw her. Kiana still was wary of her, but smiled quickly before leaving the room. Rachel glanced at Monica and sighed.  
  
"Sleep okay?" Monica asked as she stood up to get a banana.  
  
"Yeah, fine. Thanks," replied Rachel, going for some coffee.  
  
Monica glanced at a picture of her four kids that was sitting by the fruit on her way back to her seat. She decided to use this opportunity to find out just what had been going on with the other four since they left. "So, do you have any kids of your own?" Rachel gave her a shocked look but she went on. "What? You're here, aren't you? I think it's natural that I'm a little curious."  
  
Rachel gave Monica another look as she turned back to pouring her coffee. "Well, okay. I do have kids. Two; a 4-year old son and a 1-year old daughter, Bobby and Ruthie."  
  
"Hmm," she nodded, biting into the banana. "What are Phoebe and Joey up to?"  
  
"Married." Rachel's answer was short, mainly because she was still uncomfortable with the situation. "Not to each other, though. They both have kids too."  
  
Monica was suddenly sad. She realized just how much she had missed by leaving. She tried to keep her voice from showing it though, as she replied. "I'm glad you all are happy."  
  
Rachel heard something in Monica's voice there, and turned around to look at her. She was surprised to see that Monica had her head in her hands, looking down at the table. "Hey, I'm sorry. Don't get all misty here."  
  
"It's not your fault," Monica replied, wiping her eyes a bit. "I mean, it was then, but not now. I'm just being moody."  
  
"What do you mean, it was my fault then?" Rachel demanded, suddenly no longer in the mood for coffee. "It wasn't me that was going behind my friends' backs, talking about them."  
  
"Hey, it wasn't ever our fault!" retorted Monica.  
  
Rachel smirked. "Well, it was the way I remember it."  
  
~~~  
  
2003...Before the previous flashback took place...  
  
Rachel stuck her head out of the dressing room, looking for Monica. "Monica?" Just then she heard voices floating from around the corner, and stopped to listen.  
  
Monica and Chandler were standing in the hallway, just around the corner from the dressing room that Rachel and Phoebe were in. Monica was holding a cell phone, and was talking to Chandler.  
  
"No, I actually think she's going to go through with the marriage!" she said, nodding her head in agreement at Chandler's shocked expression.   
  
"She's nuts! Doesn't she realize that it will never work?" he replied, as he took back the phone.   
  
Monica shrugged. "I don't know. Hopefully it'll be better than her last one," she grinned, getting a smirk back from Chandler. "I don't know. I was just talking to her, and she sounded really thrilled about it."  
  
"Please," Chandler said, waving it off, "she's probably just using him. It can't be for real."  
  
"Well, it's someone she's known for years. Maybe she just feels that he's her safety net in case she never finds anything better." Monica paused before she went on. "I'm her maid of honor. I need to act supportive of the wedding, no matter what my opinions about it are."  
  
Chandler was surprised at that. "Well, good luck with that. She has a way of making you feel guilty about stuff without actually saying anything."  
  
Monica nodded, "I know, I know. But I think we both should talk to her soon, let her know our opinion about this. I don't want her to make that big of a mistake with her life, and I know you don't either, although you go about showing that pretty strangely."  
  
"Do we have to?" Chandler asked, not wanting to. "Do you really think it will make much of a difference? You know she is incredibly stubborn."  
  
"Well, maybe we can talk to her about it without her really knowing what we're doing," Monica replied, and then leaned in to kiss him. "Listen, I should get back. Rachel's probably getting nervous, and I want to talk to her before the ceremony."  
  
"Yeah, okay," said Chandler, and kissed her again. "See you in a bit."   
  
Rachel was stunned. She had no idea that they felt like that. How long had that been going on? She realized that Monica's footsteps were getting closer, so she shut the door and ran back into the dressing room so they wouldn't know that she had been listening.  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
After Rachel had finished telling that whole story, she turned to face Monica for the first time in ten minutes. Monica had tears streaming down her face.  
  
"I can't believe that's why you and Ross drove Chandler and me out of your lives," she said, wiping away some tears. "All of these years I didn't know, and that was it!"  
  
Rachel sighed in exasperation. "What the hell did you think it was? Of course that was it!"  
  
"No, that wasn't it!" Monica cried. "You know, you could never be a reporter!"  
  
"Ooh, really hitting me where it hurts," retorted Rachel. "What the hell has that got to do with anything?"  
  
Monica sadly smiled. "You couldn't be a reporter because you don't check to see if your information is correct."  
  
The two women just stared at each other for a few minutes, wondering what they should do next. Suddenly Chandler walked in the back door, which was adjacent to the kitchen.  
  
"Well, the shoveling sort o got done, Mon," he said, stamping his feet and brushing all of the snow off of himself. "I decided to start a snowball fight with the kids instead, and now they're out there making a snowman." He finally looked up and became surprised when he saw Monica, her face still red from crying, and Rachel, looking mad and sad, facing off in the kitchen. The tension in that room was overwhelming, and he suddenly felt glad that he had been outside instead of in here during that whole time. "Woah," he managed to say, "what happened?" He took off the rest of his outdoor garments and went over to stand next to Monica.  
  
Monica stood up. Sitting down suddenly felt stifling. She didn't want to be here, doing this. What if they got everything out in the open, but it was too late? In a way that would be even worse than it was now; to know their friendship wasn't strong enough to survive even once everyone had all the facts, rather than assume their friendship had ended because of something she and Chandler had done, even if they didn't know what it was. She suddenly noticed that Rachel was still staring at her and Chandler was still waiting for an answer. "Uh, Rachel was just telling me why we left," she said quietly, looking at her husband.  
  
"What?" Chandler was surprised. He thought they'd been fighting, not discussing old events. No wonder they both looked the way they did. "And why is that, exactly?" he asked Monica.  
  
"Do you remember a certain conversation that we had in the hallway while everybody was getting dressed for the wedding?" She waited as he started thinking and continued when he looked back at her, clearly not remembering. She smiled ruefully. "Well, do you remember a certain phone call that day? It seems we shouldn't have had that conversation, or at least not there, at a wedding.  
  
Chandler widened his eyes as he realized what Monica was talking about. "Oh, my God. That's it?" Monica nodded in return, and he turned to Rachel. "Okay, now I realize how that sounded and why you were so mad, but you should've let us explain what we were saying."  
  
Rachel sighed and looked down at her feet. "Well, clearly I'm not going anywhere else. Now's your chance."  
  
Monica and Chandler looked at each other.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part 5...  
  
Well, my series is nearing the end, I hope. :) I hope this chapter was good, and I hope I'm keeping you intrigued for the next one!  



	6. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 6

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 6  
  
Dun, dun, dun... here's my sixth chapter, and I think my last flashback scene will take place in this one. This chapter should reveal all of "The Incident" for you, although I'm not positive because as I said, I'm writing this as I go along. So anyway, enjoy!  
  
~~~  
  
2003... Before the previous flashback took place...(Are you getting the idea yet? LOL :) )  
  
Monica put down the curling iron she was using on Rachel's hair as Phoebe put a little shadow on Rachel's eyes. Their next task was to get Rachel into her dress. The other two women were currently having a deep conversation about things Rachel and Ross could do on their honeymoon, so she quietly excused herself when Chandler's cell phone started ringing. She'd found it in her purse that morning and hadn't gotten around to returning it yet.  
  
"Hello?" She answered the phone on the third ring.  
  
The woman on the other end sounded surprised. "Well hello, who is this?"  
  
"This is Monica."  
  
"Oh, Monica dear, of course! This is Nora!" her mother-in-law replied.  
  
Monica smiled. Talking to Chandler's mother was always so much fun. "Hi, Nora. What's up?"  
  
"Well dear, I'm calling to tell you that I'm getting married."  
  
Monica had no clue what to say next. She turned to Rachel and Phoebe and motioned that she'd take the call outside. They nodded and she left.  
  
~~~  
  
A few minutes later she was out in the maze of hallways that there were, hanging up the phone, and staring into space as she tried to sort out what she had just heard. She jumped when she suddenly felt arms wrap around her waist, but heard Chandler chuckle.  
  
"Relax, gorgeous, it's just me," he said, turning her to face him. "What are you doing out here?"  
  
"Well, your phone rang and I took it outside as to not disturb the others," Monica said. "What are you doing here?"  
  
He grinned at her. "What, now I need to have a reason to want to see my wonderful, yet phone-stealing, wife?" He gave her a kiss while at the same time rubbed her stomach, which was getting bigger now that she was five months pregnant.  
  
"Oh, thanks," she replied, smirking at him. "Since you're here, I may as well tell you what the phone call was about. It was your mom."  
  
"What did she want?" Chandler asked, kind of worried.  
  
Monica looked at the ground for a moment, and then decided just to say it. "She's getting married again."  
  
"Again?" Chandler couldn't easily comprehend that. His mother had just gotten divorced from her third husband five months ago. She'd married him a year ago. No way could she be getting married again.  
  
She nodded back at him. "I know, I think it's quite hasty too, but she sounded sure. She wanted me to tell you. You're supposed to be the best man for her fiancée, Greg, and I'm to be her maid of honor."  
  
~~~  
  
At that same moment in the dressing room the girls were in, Rachel was suddenly panicking. It was an hour until she got married, and she needed to talk to Monica. She excused herself from the conversation she and Phoebe were having and went over to the door, hoping that Monica would be off the phone by now so she could come back in and talk.  
  
"Monica?" Rachel stuck her head out of the dressing room, looking for Monica. "Monica?" Just then she heard voices floating from around the corner, and stopped to listen.  
  
~~~  
  
2011...  
  
"And that's apparently where you started hearing our conversation," Monica said, feeling exhausted from telling the story. At the same time though, she felt something lift off of her chest that had been there for years. It was definitely worth the moment's anguish to say that.  
  
Now it was Rachel's turn to cry, which Monica noticed when she looked over at her. She had her head resting on her arms, which were resting on the counter, and seeing the sight of her all hunched over, trying not to cry, made Monica sad as well.  
  
"Are you okay, Rachel?" Chandler asked after a few minutes of silence. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened..."  
  
"Oh, God, no," Rachel choked out, cutting him off. "I am so sorry! I'm an awful friend, a terrible human being. I never should've run to the phone to call Ross that day, I should've let you explain... Ross and I...we just didn't think..." She saw that Monica was about to talk but she stopped her as well. "Do you mind...would it be okay if I used your phone?" she asked, trying to stop crying. "I really need to call Ross."   
  
Monica nodded, and reached out and took Chandler's hand as they watched their old friend slowly walk down the hall to the den.  
  
~~~  
  
After dinner that night, when Chandler and Kiana were doing the dishes and the younger kids had returned upstairs to watch TV, Monica knocked on the door of the den. There was no answer, which is what it had been like all day long. When she tried the doorknob however, she discovered that it was finally unlocked. She slowly opened the door, being careful not to tip the tray of food she'd saved for Rachel from their dinner, and looked inside. Rachel was in there lying on the couch, staring at the ceiling. She didn't look over as Monica entered and shut the door behind her. She still didn't look as Monica set the tray down and sat in the chair next to the couch.  
  
"Rachel, you never answered before when Chandler tried to reschedule your flight for you. You're stuck here until you tell him something." She looked at her, but got no response. "Rach, I brought you some dinner. You've got to eat it; you haven't eaten anything all day." Still nothing. "Come on. You haven't left this room since you came in here this morning. The kids are beginning to think you're some kind of freak." She smiled, expecting to get some kind of a reaction from that, but Rachel remained expressionless. "Look, just tell Chandler when you want to leave, and then you can return to your life in New York with Ross and everything will be okay."  
  
"No, it won't, Monica," Rachel finally said. "It won't. I am a freak."  
  
Monica sighed. "Rachel, you're not. This was just a huge misunderstanding, albeit one that ruined many peoples' lives."  
  
"Misunderstandings suck," grumbled Rachel, which caused Monica to chuckle.  
  
"Yes, they do," she agreed, nodding her head. "But they happen anyway."  
  
Rachel sat up and turned to look at Monica. "Well, they do happen. But where do we go from here?"  
  
Monica hated it when she was asked a question she didn't know the answer to.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part Six...  
  
Well folks, how have I done? I think the next chapter may be my last one, but I'm not sure. Either way it'll be the last chapter or one of the few last chapters. I'll have it up soon, I promise. :)  



	7. TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 7

TOW Misunderstandings Suck - 7  
  
Okay folks. I think this will be the last chapter. (Good news for me, but maybe bad news for you who like the series!) I'll let you know. The story has done pretty much everything I've wanted it to, except for one thing...  
  
~~~  
  
July 2001... Monica & Chandler's house...  
  
Monica carefully carried the package over two her two youngest children, James and Candice. It was their fourth birthday party, for which lots of people had gathered, and the event would probably get pretty hectic if she dropped what she was carrying. She approached them, who were sitting by Chandler at a picnic table. The remnants of the rest of their presents that they had already opened lay all around on the ground, and all of the kids who were in the yard that day stretched to see what was in this gift. The adults all smiled, for they'd already been told about it.  
  
"Thank you, Mommy!"  
  
"Thank you, Mommy!"  
  
She smiled as her children chorused out their thanks to her and she stepped back to watch as they opened the box. Their screams of delight made her laugh when she saw the little cocker spaniel puppy jump out, eager to see what all the people were up to. All the kids flocked to see the dog, and all the adults backed away, knowing that once the group of kids lost interest in staring at the new present they would all want to go home. Monica knew that her own kids wouldn't get tired of it soon, for they'd all been asking for a pet for a while. Chandler walked up to her, giving her a kiss.  
  
"Thanks Mommy," he said, grinning. "I was wanting one of those."  
  
"What, a puppy?" she asked, playing along.   
  
"No, a kiss," Chandler replied, and leaned in to get another one.  
  
She laughed as they pulled apart. "Well, I'm glad you had a good day." She looked over at all four of her children, who were still playing with the dog in the middle of the lawn. "You know, you should really get on your mother's case to send the kids birthday cards regularly. I want them to have something from one of their grandparents so they can remember them."  
  
Chandler sighed. "Monica, I'm sure your parents were told about the kids. They probably just forgot."  
  
"But we don't know that, do we?" she asked. "We haven't spoken to anyone since Rachel left in February. We don't know, she maybe never even told Phoebe or Joey about her stay with us. Let alone my parents."  
  
"Well, do you want to call Rachel?" Chandler asked, as he picked a fuzzball off of her shoulder.  
  
"Thanks. But, I don't know. It just seems to me that if she was ready to talk to us, she would've called," she replied. "After all, she had to deal with more than we did. True, we dealt with our ruined friendship, but she had that and the fact that she knew she and Ross were mostly to blame for it."  
  
Chandler decided to change the subject. "Whatever. We can discuss this later. Now isn't really the time; we still have guests."  
  
Monica smiled at him. "I know, okay. It's not that big of a deal after all, I mean we have until August when Ellie's birthday comes to talk to your mother." She turned and saw Alexis heading towards them, and smiled at her. But at the same time she knew she wasn't as fine as she said she was.  
  
"Great party, you guys," Alexis said once she reached them. "You really got your kids excited with that dog. I think every kid in the neighborhood will be at your house playing with it for the next week."  
  
Rolling his eyes sarcastically, Chandler picked up a glass of punch from a table they walked by. "Yeah, that will be weird. 'Cause everyone's not over here every day anyway, eating all of the treats that Monica's always baking."  
  
"Well, she could always give some of us the recipes so she wouldn't be the only one with begging children on her doorstep," Alexis replied, looking pointedly at Monica.  
  
Monica chuckled. "You need more than my recipes. Try the touch of a magic want to your cooking skills."  
  
"Ha, ha, funny," retorted Alexis, smirking at her.  
  
Suddenly the woman who lived across the street from Monica and Chandler called out from the other side of the yard. She was standing near the house and could see the driveway in the front yard. "Monica? Chandler?"  
  
"Yeah, Carol. What's up?" Monica called back.  
  
"I just thought I should tell you, but there's a strange van that just pulled up into your driveway. Were you expecting anyone?"  
  
Chandler shook his head, wondering who it was. "No, but we'll go see who it is."  
  
"Look after the kids for us, will ya Alex?" Monica looked back at her friend who nodded as she and Chandler started across the yard. Just as they reached the corner of the house where Carol had been when she saw the van, they nearly ran into the woman who was walking around the corner right at them.   
  
"Oh!" she exclaimed, and it was then that Monica and Chandler realized they were staring at Rachel.  
  
"Rachel." It was a statement, because Monica didn't really know what else to say. "Hi. How have you been?"  
  
Rachel smiled uncomfortably at them. "Well, uh, not so good." She looked around and suddenly realized that the yard was full of people. "Did I come at a bad time? I didn't realize you had company, there were no cars in the driveway."  
  
Chandler shook his head. "It's not really how it looks. Every weekend in the spring, summer, and fall, the neighborhood has a barbecue. We're having it this weekend since it's James and Candice's birthdays as well."  
  
"Well I'm still sorry, you could be spending time with your kids instead of me," she replied, although she looked less uncomfortable than she had a minute ago.  
  
"Well, you're here, aren't you?" Monica asked. "You may as well stay. We're not about to just send you right back to New York."  
  
"Do you mind if we talk?" she asked. "I just have to get something from the car first."  
  
Monica nodded. "Sure. I'll just tell Alexis that she's in charge of the yard for a while. We can go inside, so just come in through the front door and go to the living room when you come back."   
  
~~~  
  
In the living room, Monica was occupied with moving things around on the mantle that was above their fireplace and didn't hear Chandler come up behind her. He gently pinched her butt, causing her to yell and jump, and turned to face him.  
  
"Chandler! What's wrong with simply saying 'hello'?" she cried, lightly hitting him on the arm. "You scared me half to death."  
  
"That's not as fun," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist. He gave her a kiss, and that's when they noticed they were no longer alone.  
  
Rachel cleared her throat to get their attention. "Hi." As they turned towards her, their eyes widened as they saw that what Rachel had brought from the van was Ross, Phoebe, Joey, and six children. They pulled apart and struggled to think of what to say.  
  
"Um, you can send the kids out back if you'd like," Monica finally said, with a nervous tone to her voice. There's lots of food, drinks, kids, adult supervision, and also a dog."  
  
All the kids looked up at Rachel, and she nodded her head at them. "Go on. Might as well get to know their children." The kids scampered outside, and Rachel paused before she continued. "Two of those were my kids, if you'll remember, Bobby and Ruthie. Then three were Phoebe's, and the other was Joey's."  
  
Chandler and Monica nodded, and he motioned to the couch. "Have a seat, if you'd like. Is anyone thirsty?"  
  
"No, we're fine," Ross said, after sharing a look with the group. "We just really need to talk."  
  
"Well, if you won't sit, then I will," said Monica, promptly taking a place on a chair. When nobody said anything she decided to urge them on. "You said you wanted to talk?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah," Rachel said. "I had a rough time after I returned home in February. I felt awful."  
  
"We all felt awful," said Joey, chiming in. Monica realized that she had started to forget his voice, having not heard it in almost nine years.  
  
Ross sighed. "Rachel and I knew we had to talk to you, to set things right again. After hearing the whole story, something we definitely should've gotten before any words were said when it actually happened, we tried to figure out how to do that. We didn't feel it was right to just walk back into your life, expecting to be friends again after everything that we did."  
  
"We demanded that we be brought along though," said Phoebe, motioning to herself and Joey. "We didn't treat you very well either."  
  
Ross glanced over at Monica, who was looking down at the floor. "Mon, I spoke to Mom and Dad. I take it they never talked to you?" Monica shook her head but didn't reply. "Look, we would really like to be friends again. I'm not saying that we're going to move here, or especially that you should move back to New York, but we should have contact. Our friendships have been hurt badly, and our family has been torn apart, but we really hope you can forgive us."  
  
"It's not going to be easy," Chandler said. "Things won't change overnight."  
  
"No, I know. We know," Rachel replied, "but at least we're all talking now. That's more than we were six months ago. We were really hasty, careless, short-tempered, and mean back then, but we hope you can see how bad we feel about that."  
  
Monica wiped away a tear that was rolling down her cheek and looked up at them. "No, you really hurt us. It would've been one thing for you two to be mad at us," she said, addressing Ross and Rachel, "but you turned the rest of our friends against us. Once you got back from your honeymoon and talked to Phoebe and Joey, they wouldn't talk to us either. Do you know how that hurt? To all of a sudden have all of your friends ignore you and be mean when you weren't sure what you did to cause that?"  
  
Rachel opened her mouth to talk, but instead stopped and turned away. "I'm sorry. Excuse me." She quickly walked out of the room, not wanting the others to see her cry.  
  
"Things don't have to be better immediately," Joey said. "It was hard for us too, back then. We heard some things, and with neither you or Chandler not telling us an explanation for that, we finally believed it. I guess now the reason you didn't explain was because you didn't know what it was that was wrong, and nobody listened to you anyway."  
  
"We just want to know if there's any possibility that we could ever be friends again," said Phoebe. "Maybe even get back to the way that it was before..."  
  
As she drifted off, Rachel returned. She had heard their conversation and just waited as Monica and Chandler thought about what they all had said. She felt nervous as they looked at each other, making their decision without speaking a word, but felt a little hopeful as she saw Monica slightly smile.  
  
"We'll see," she said, standing up out of the chair. "I think it's very possible that we can get back what we once had." She smiled at Chandler, and then turned to the other four who were standing there, looking relieved. "How about we take a break from this at-home-therapy session that we've got going and rejoin the party that we've got in the back yard? The kids still all need to be introduced."  
  
At that moment, they all felt some of the tension lift right out of the room. Things would be just fine, Phoebe thought. They'd have to give it some time.  
  
"Great," said Ross, and walked over to Monica and took her hand. When she smiled at him to say that she was okay with that, they all turned and walked out of the house.  
  
~~~  
  
End Part Seven...  
  
*SIGHS IN DISGUST* Well, that was awful. :( I needed a way to end the series, like a little epilogue, and that was as good as it got. This is the end of my little series, so sorry to leave it so dumbly. But oh well, I just think back to the first few stories and am happier about how those turned out than this one. I knew some of the elements that I wanted to work into this story, but incorporating them was another thing. It turned out to be kinda boring and sappy, I think, but hopefully a few of you will think differently. Anyway, I'm sorry again for the really weak ending I have here, but hope you liked the series anyway. I have another idea for a single fanfic, but it could be a while before I'm motivated enough to bother putting that actually into a story. So until then...bye!  



End file.
